Bipartisan Lawmakers Call For Criminal Investigation Into VA Scandal

Will Eric Holder use his highly politicized Justice Department to investigate?

(LA Times) The Justice Department should enter the investigation of whether Veterans Affairs employees have falsified records to cover up long waits at VA medical facilities, Democratic and Republican lawmakers said Sunday.

“Only the Department of Justice and the FBI have the resources, the expertise and the authority to do a prompt and effective criminal investigation of the secret waiting lists, potential destruction of documents, falsification of records, in effect, the cooking of books and covering up that may have occurred,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), a veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, agreed. The “Department of Justice needs to get involved,” he said on the same program.

The VA’s inspector general is investigating 26 sites to determine whether employees covered up long waits for medical appointments, and the Justice Department is already involved to some extent.

At this point, it’s pretty darned clear that employees covered up long waits: there’s no need for an internal review. These are established facts There’s been quite a bit of waste, fraud, and abuse throughout the Veterans Affairs. An internal review might uncover even more fraud, waste, and abuse. What’s needed is criminal investigation of what is already known. If the VA was a private company, they’d already be under investigation by a criminal agency of the government. Consider that the FBI immediately jumped into the mass shooting by Leftist nutjob Elliot Rogers in California, despite being an incident that should be handled by the State of California. Yet, so far, no (known) involvement by the FBI/Justice Dept of the VA.

Rep. Jeff Miller, a Florida Republican who heads the House Veterans Affairs panel, on Thursday forecast more serious developments in the national program serving nearly 9 million veterans.

“We’ve received some information and some tips that will make what has already come look like kindergarten stuff,” he told CNN’s New Day.

Here’s the kicker

The controversy has broadened since CNN first reported six months ago on allegations of alarming shortcomings within the VA medical care system that potentially have had deadly consequences in dozens of cases.

Yet, despite knowing that Obama pretty much learns the news when American citizens do, nothing has been done, and there is no external investigation. No criminal investigation. Maybe Obama should stop reading TMZ so much. Of course, far left groups are already circling the wagons to protect Obama and Shinecki, like the Center For American Progress, which notes that Shinseki has done good things for the VA. And

Secretary Shinseki has called for a full Inspector General report investigating the Phoenix VA and all other locations where these secret waiting lists were reported, as well as “face-to-face” audits of all VA facilities. Meanwhile, he immediately ordered the director and associate director of the Phoenix VA to be put on administrative leave and promised that those responsible will be held accountable.

Last time I checked, Secretary Shinseki is the person who is ultimately responsible for the VA as a Cabinet level Secretary. Yes, he has made some progress in helping the VA. Horrible things have also happened under his watch. It’ll be interesting to hear what he’s done about the waste, fraud, and abuse, much of which led to the deaths of American veterans, when Congress holds hearings.